Description

The Stars Career Development award has been created to firmly establish the career of early career investigators. This salary and research funding represents a three (3) year commitment by the Arthritis Society, together with an additional three (3) year commitment by the applicant’s Host Institution. The program is intended to promote creativity in all domains of arthritis-related research responsive to the Arthritis Society’s strategic priorities. Applicants should review the two research themes set out in the Arthritis Society’s 2015-2020 research strategy: (1) improving our understanding of arthritis and finding the cure, and (2) improving the care and management of arthritis.

Special Call
Applications are encouraged in the area of childhood arthritis. The Arthritis Society has committed $5M over 5 years to our Stop Childhood Arthritis initiative to fund ground-breaking research into childhood arthritis so that no child has to live with unnecessary pain. We are very proud to partner with Genome Canada and other organizations to accelerate this important research. We anticipate funding at least one award in this area, with a particular emphasis on:

disease mechanisms of childhood arthritis

new therapies and personalized approaches for childhood arthritis

innovations in transitions of care from pediatric to adult settings

Consumer Engagement
The Arthritis Society strongly values the voice of consumers in research, both in their inclusion in grant applications and the peer review process. Applicants are encouraged to consider this in their submission.

Host Institution Commitment*

In addition to the terms and obligations set out within the Host Institution agreement,the Host Institution must commit, as part of the application process, an additional three (3) years of equivalent research and salary support to the applicant (at an appropriate rank and salary) for a total commitment of six (6) years of support. The Host Institution must also commit to providing the applicant with adequate infrastructure and physical space to conduct their research program. The incremental benefit of the salary portion of the award must be clearly indicated in the application to ensure that there is a net impact for the funded investigator, rather than a budgetary offset to the Host Institution.

In addition, applicants must identify an accomplished investigator as a mentor who will assist in the development of the research program as well as the career development of the applicant. It is preferred that the mentor be located in the same institution as the applicant but if that is not possible, a clear rationale for the chosen mentor and details of the nature and frequency of the interactions must be provided. Applicants must provide rationale if they are remaining in the same institution as their PhD and/or PhD supervisor.

All applicants are strongly advised to read all program documentation listed below. If you have any questions, please contact the research department at [email protected].

Eligibility

To be eligible, an applicant must:

Be an eligible Principal Investigator as defined by the Arthritis Society;

Be within 5 years of their first academic appointment and within 10 years of their most recent graduate or health professional degree (or equivalent, in a field such as medicine, dentistry, rehabilitation sciences, nursing, pharmaceutical studies, veterinary medicine, etc.) at the time of the application deadline. Candidates who have a firm offer of an academic appointment are also acceptable;

Be a Canadian citizen or resident of Canada at the time of application with a position at an eligible Canadian Host Institution;

Have a commitment from their Host Institution* from the Faculty Dean or Research Director that includes: Institutional support (suitable lab/research space, resources and support, etc.); a minimum of 80% protected research time for the duration of the award; the 3 additional years of equivalent research and salary support (at an appropriate rank and salary beyond the term of this award) as well as adequate infrastructure and physical space

The roles and responsibilities of the Principal Investigator and Host Institution in the management of the Arthritis Society’s research and training funds are defined on the Arthritis Society’s website.

Award Amount and Term

The maximum award per application is $125,000 annually for up to three years ($375,000 total), with an additional 3 years of support from the Host Institution of an equal value. These awards are non-renewable.

This award is meant to primarily support the salary of the individual, therefore:

At least $50,000 per year must be used for salary support, except where it exceeds the institution salary scale;

The remaining amount of the award is to be used for research and support (e.g. research expenses including pilot study data collection, research personnel, supplies, and/or equipment, travel to scientific conferences, etc.).

Requested research costs must be associated with the applicant’s described research program and be well aligned in terms of the requirements for a specific project. In cases where the value of the teaching and other duties are less than the salary portion of this award, the Host Institution must ensure this award benefits the awardee through other means (e.g. travel allowance, access to research staff or support, etc.). Please see the requirement for the Host Institution commitment above*. Equipment requests of up to $10,000 can be included within the proposed budget and must be appropriately justified. Note that indirect costs, the salaries for supervisor/mentors, secretarial or administrative assistants or tuition fees are not eligible expenses.

Peer Review

A multidisciplinary peer review committee will be assembled to review the applications. The peer review committee will consist of scientific experts and clinical with broad expertise, along with consumers to provide patient perspectives.

Candidates will be notified in late-August if they will be required to make a presentation via webinar to the panel at their meeting in mid-September.

Abstract Registration

All submissions will be screened for completeness and eligibility. Note that incomplete applications by the deadline will be deemed ineligible and withdrawn from the competition. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that applications are complete at the time of submission.

All applicants are strongly advised to read all program documentation listed below. If you have any questions, please contact the research department at [email protected].

A maximum of one application per Principal Investigator will be permitted in each competition.

Abstract registrations must be submitted through the Arthritis Society’s online research grant portal. The abstract registration will inform the panel composition. Registration is mandatory and will require applicant and mentor details, scientific abstract, keywords, relevance statement, and suggested reviewers and exclusions.

Any significant changes to the proposed program, environment or mentor after the Abstract Registration deadline should be communicated to the Arthritis Society as soon as they are known. Substantive changes that significantly alter the overall goals and aims of the proposed program relative to the Abstract Registration are not permitted.

Rationale for selection of the mentor (additional details on working relationship is required if at a different institution from the applicant)

A description of the research environment, including resources and facilities available to the applicant and a brief description of the specific dedicated research space.

A description of the research career education and training opportunities that will be accessed during the grant award period

Relevance of the proposal to the Arthritis Society’s 2015-2020 Research Strategy and one or both of the research theme(s): Improving our understanding of arthritis and finding the cure, and improving the care and management of arthritis (Max. 700 words)

References (Max. 32,000 characters)

Description of teaching (and other institutional) commitments and benefits/impact of this award to the developing career of the candidate (Max. 250 words per section)

Lay summary sections (Max. 100-150 words per section)

Knowledge translation sections (Max. 250 words per section)

Budget and budget justification (Max. 1000 words)

Required attachments

Signature page (signed by the candidate, Department Head and Host Institution)

PI and mentor(s) CVs (Canadian Common CV - CIHR Project Biosketch)

Timeline and milestones (1 page diagram/chart)

Three letters of support, including one from the applicant’s mentor(s) outlining the career mentorship plan

Letter of support from the Faculty Dean or Research Director of the Host Institution confirming:

A minimum of 80% protected research time for the duration of the award

Details of the Host Institution’s offer of 3 additional years of equivalent research and salary support (at an appropriate rank and salary beyond the term of this award)

Optional attachments

Appendices (Max. 5 MB per document)

Review Criteria

The review criteria for applications will include, but not necessarily be restricted to the following:

Quality of the Principal Investigator and research environment

Applicant’s research experience as well as academic and publication record (i.e. relative to career stage)

Strength of the CVs and letters of support

Suitability of the research environment

Strength and appropriateness of the mentor as well as the career educational program objectives and plan

Evidence that the personnel, facilities and infrastructure required to conduct the research are available

Potential value (in protected time) to the applicant and potential impact of the award on the applicant's career path and of the applicant becoming a leader in arthritis research in Canada

Quality of the commitment of the Host Institution to provide protected time and research support funds

Quality of research program

Scientific merit of the arthritis research program and its potential to create new knowledge, significantly advance our understanding of arthritis, and/or improve care or support for people affected by arthritis

Feasibility of the proposed research program, and specific project, if proposed

Applicants must justify the relevance of the intended proposal to one or both ofthe Arthritis Society’s research strategies:Strategic Theme I: Improving our understanding of arthritis and finding the cure
Research under this theme will seek to improve our understanding of the causes of arthritis in order to develop new approaches to alleviate the pain, prevent and/or slow the progression of disease (including early diagnosis), restore joint function, and eventually cure those affected by arthritis.Strategic Theme II: Improving the care and management of arthritis
Research under this theme will seek to uncover new knowledge that will inform better ways to optimize the health of people with arthritis through improved treatment, management and self-care strategies.

The consumer reviewer’s role is to assess the feasibility and potential impact of the research to address an important problem, for the research results to have significant and broad impact and of contributing to the understanding of arthritis and/or how to treat or improve outcomes for people who live with arthritis, as well as to assess the quality of the lay sections.

Multiple applications/multiple sources of funding

Successful applicants can accept additional salary awards as long as the total does not exceed the PI’s salary as per the Host Institution scale. There should be minimal or no overlap with other funding for the research portion of the award. The onus is on the applicant to indicate the extent (or absence) of overlap. Funding overlaps with other agencies may result in a reduction in funding from the Arthritis Society.

Grantee and Host Institution requirements

In addition to the requirements set out in the Host Institution agreement, grantees and Host Institutions who receive Arthritis Society funds are expected to act as ambassadors of our mission and may be called upon to communicate about their research with donors and other stakeholders. Funded researchers are expected to support the Arthritis Society’s efforts to engage the arthritis research community, support the development and dissemination of Arthritis Society tools and resources, and provide expertise to engage people affected by arthritis when called upon (for example, through expert community presentations). We also encourage grantees and host institutions to reach out to us to discuss opportunities for engagement.